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Michigan State women shaky sans Merchant, lose at Northwestern, 76-65

Evanston, Illinois – There was a moment before the Michigan State women’s basketball team met Northwestern Tuesday night, when a handshake between Spartans interim head coach Amaka Agugua and Northwestern head coach Joe McKeown became a longer embrac

EVANSTON, Ill. – There was a moment before the Michigan State women’s basketball team met Northwestern Tuesday night when a handshake between Spartans interim head coach Amaka Agugua and Northwestern head coach Joe McKeown became a longer embrace.

The two go back to the days when Agugua was a high school player in the Washington area and was recruited by McKeown, then the head coach at George Washington.

But on Tuesday, just ahead of Northwestern’s 76-65 victory at Welsh-Ryan Arena, Agugua and McKeown shared thoughts about two people who were not there.

Northwestern is still dealing with the passing of sophomore guard Jordan Hankins, who was found dead in her dorm room on Jan. 9, in what was later determined to be a suicide. Both teams wore “JH 5” patches on their jerseys Tuesday night.

Earlier in the day, Merchant had checked out of a New Jersey hospital, which she had entered Saturday after coaching the Spartans in a loss at Rutgers.

“(McKeown) told me he was praying for Suzy,” said Agugua, also known as “Mox." “I’ve known him for a long time and he wished me luck and said he was proud of me. Then, we talked about Jordan Hankins, and I said we were keeping her family in our prayers.”

Health issues also forced Merchant to miss the Spartans’ Jan. 4 loss at Purdue. But she had returned to the sidelines for the last three games before her recent hospitalization.

Earlier Tuesday, Michigan State athletic director Mark Hollis said he had instructed Merchant to take a medical leave of absence. No timetable has been given for her return.

Agugua, in her fourth season with MSU and second as associate head coach, will oversee the program until Merchant’s return. Agugua, who played at Hofstra and previously coached at Old Dominion, said she is excited about the challenge.

“It’s unfortunate circumstances, but a great opportunity to get my feet wet. (Being a head coach) is something I want to do in the future,” she said. “(Merchant) has helped me prepare for this from the moment I became an associate head coach. She’s given me a lot of leeway in practice and in talking to the team. It’s not something I was nervous about.”

Tuesday, the Spartans showed signs of being rattled early against Northwestern (15-4, 4-2 Big Ten) as they fell behind by 13 points in the second quarter, though they rallied to take a third-quarter lead.

But MSU’s struggled late in the third quarter and throughout the fourth. MSU (13-6, 3-3) will bring a two-game losing streak in Sunday’s rematch against Purdue at Breslin Center.

MSU senior Tori Jankoska, who scored a game-high 25 points, said dealing with Merchant’s absence has gotten easier. Jankoska, who said she has been in touch with Merchant via phone and text, also said Agugua is up for the job.

“It’s not the first game (Merchant) has been gone,” Jankoska said. “We were a little more comfortable (against Northwestern) without her. We executed the same way and had a good game plan.

“Coach Mox has been a big voice (in the locker room). We’ve been going through ups and downs all season and our head coach not being there doesn’t change the way we play.”

Redshirt freshman Victoria Gaines said she knew Merchant had been watching the game on television, and Gaines said she was scared to check her phone to possibly find text messages from the coach critiquing her performance.

Gaines also revealed she had been personally affected by Hankins’ death. A native of Merrillville, Ind., Gaines had played on an Indiana High School All-Star team with Hankins, who was from Indianapolis.

“I was heartbroken because I knew her,” Gaines said. “I was in shock honestly. It was just a tragedy, period. I couldn’t even imagine.”